UNIT 1. CRIME
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1. Commission of an act forbidden by law.
2. Deviant behaviour that violates prevailing norms.
3. Illegal activity in general.
4. A bad, immoral or dishonourable act.
5. Offence that is committed against individuals or groups of individuals with criminal intent.
6. The breach of rules or laws.
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1. Most crimes are drug-related.
2. Schools should have programmes telling young people about the dan-ger of taking drugs.
3. Most crimes are against property, not people.
4. Low level of education can lead to crime.
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1. Do you think that the problem of criminality is urgent in our country?
2. What can be a cause of crime?
a) family surroundings, especially in early years.
b) the income level of the family.
c) the moral atmosphere of the time: unemployment, commodity shortages, the impact of the media.
d) the effectiveness of the police.
3. What kinds of crimes do you know?
TEXT
Crime
Vocabulary
1. a breach of rules
2. to prescribe punishment
3. to pass a new law
4. to identify a suspect
5. an unauthorized access
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1. Every violation of law is a crime, isnt it?
2. Do different societies define crimes in the same way?
Crime is a breach of rules or laws for which some governing authority can ultimately prescribe a punishment. Individual human societies may define crimes differently. Modern societies generally regard crimes as offences against the public or the state. The word crime is generally associated with wrongdoing but not every type of wrongdoing is a crime. Telling lies is immoral wrong but if telling lies is put into practice resulting in physical harm to another, then such action becomes both criminal and immoral.
There are some acts which are considered to be crimes in one country but not in another. For example, it is a crime to have more than one wife at the same time in France, but not in Indonesia. There are quite a lot of agreements among states as to which acts are criminal. But such acts as stealing, physical attack or damaging somebodys property will be unlawful in all countries and the way of dealing with people suspected of crime may be different. Sometimes government creates new crimes by identifying a form of behavior and passing a new law to deal with it. Different societies or governments often review their ideas of what should and shouldnt be a crime. For example, race or sex discrimination hasnt been considered a crime for a long time. In recent years the Internet has grown explosively and there appeared the new crimes such as unauthorized access or hacking, copyright infringements, child pornography, etc. Cybercrimes may intentionally harm the reputation of the victim, they may threaten a nations security or financial health.
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Most crimes are not reported, not recorded, not followed through, or not able to be proved. When informal relationships and sanctions are insufficient to establish and maintain a desired social order, a state may impose more strict systems of social control.
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UNIT 2. CATEGORIES OF CRIMES IN THE UK
TEXT
Categories of Crimes in The UK
Vocabulary
1. indictable offences , ( )
2. summary offences , (. . , ) -
3. either-way offences (- -)
4. intent
5. liability
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1. What are the three categories of crimes?
2. In what way are indictable offences punished?
3. What offences are heard in the magistrates courts?
4. Can an either-way offence be heard in different courts?
5. What is known as a strict liability offence?
6. What is the most violent crime in your opinion?
There are three categories of crimes in the UK: indictable, summary, and either-way crimes.
Indictable offences are the most serious ones and are punishable by the longest prison terms. They include murder, rape and robbery and can only be tried in the Crown Court.
Summary offences are the least serious ones, such as speeding and drunk-driving. Summary trials are heard in magistrates courts.
Either-way offences can be heard either in the Crown Court or by magistrates. Examples of either way offences include theft, drug offences and less serious physical violence. A magistrate can decide that an either-way offence is serious enough to be heard in the Crown Court where the penalties prescribed can be more severe. If, however, a magistrate decides that an either-way offence can be heard as a summary trial, the defendant can choose to move the trial to the Crown Court.
An important aspect of criminal law is that in most crimes the prosecution has to prove two elements. The first, actus reus, refers to the criminal act
itself. The second, mens rea, refers to the intent to commit a crime guilty mind. However, in some cases, such as drunk driving or speeding, the prosecution does not have to prove intent. Such offences are said to be of strict liability.
Types of serious crimes in most jurisdictions are: arson, theft, sexual offences, terrorism. In common law arson is setting fire to the dwelling of another person. Theft sometimes is still known by the traditional name of larceny which probably is the most common crime involving criminal intent. The traditional definition of theft is the physical removal of an object without the consent of the owner. Burglary is entering a building, inhabited vehicle or vessel to steal, to inflict bodily harm or to do unlawful damage. In English law, any entry by an individual into a building with intent to commit theft is burglary.
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Robbery is the commission of theft in circumstances of violence. Robbery takes many forms from the mugging of a stranger in the street to robberies of banks, involving numerous participants and careful planning.
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1. Summary offences are punished by the longest prison terms.
2. Such offences as theft and drug offences can only be heard in Magistrates courts.
3. Summary offences are the least serious offences.
4. Actus reus refers to the intent to commit a crime. 5. Mens rea refers to the criminal act itself.
